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INSIDE
Join the team
that makes
a difference
Do something amazing
with your medical career
YOUR GUIDE TO
ARMY MEDICAL
SERVICES
HEALTHCARE ROLES
VETERINARY JOBS
DENTAL CAREERS
GREAT TRAINING
OPPORTUNITIES
2
WELCOME
3
TELLING IT
LIKE IT IS
CONTENTS
Sport and lifestyle 4
Off-duty thrills for the soldiers and
officers of the Army Medical Services
Making a difference 6
How training prepares AMS experts to
carry out treatment on the battlefield
Anatomy of the AMS 12
How the AMS four corps pull together
to deliver vital healthcare in the field
Career opportunities 14
The full range of jobs and roles on
offer in the militarys medical team
Your next move 26
The next step towards a challenging
career at the heart of the action
For the lowdown on what life is like in the Army
Medical Services, theres no one better to ask than
the healthcare professionals serving right now
You get the chance to meet
new friends and to cement
those relationships in exotic
places around the world p6
CaptainJohreneDevlin, 29
QARANCNursingOfficer (Regular)
Work is never mundane when
youre delivering medical care
in a real combat zone p14
Corporal TimHicks, 31
RAMCClinical Physiologist (Regular)
You dont have
to wait forever
to be handed
responsibility
in the Army
youre thrown
into the action
almost straight
away p18
PrivateAaronRennie, 23
RAMCOperatingTheatre
Practitioner (Regular)
A
sick army cant do its job
properly, and its the role of
the Army Medical Services
(AMS) to keep soldiers, officers
and military animals fighting fit.
Its team of medics, dentists and
vets are trained to deliver expert
care to the injured and unwell.
You will play a critical role in
combat, and make a difference to
the lives of others in peacetime.
Youll also get to put your skills to
the test in unique environments
ones you wont experience in a
civilian hospital or workplace.
And more than any other part
of the Army, the AMS relies on its
Territorials, presenting you with
the chance to develop fresh skills
in your spare time. You can even
give your civilian career a boost
by picking up additional specialist
qualifications. Add to this the
chance to do adventurous training
abroad, and to learn from some
of the countrys best healthcare
professionals, and a role in the AMS
is as rewarding as it is challenging.
I wanted to experience new things, but I didnt
expect to be driving for the Army rally team p4
Corporal EmmaMorrison, 33, RAMCOperatingTheatrePractitioner (Territorial)
The Army has enabled me
to gain many qualifications
and now I am Corporal I can
access the Foundation
Degree in Health and
Social Science p12
Corporal LetsoRapoo, 26
QARANCHealthcareAssistant (Regular)
4 5
AT EASE
The AMS medics, vets and dentists get to take part in some truly
weird and wonderful activities in their spare time
CHILLS, SPILLS AND
DRIVING THRILLS
You could say Sean Greaves likes a challenge. He has
conquered two mountains and relaxes by cross-country
skiing in Norway. But even he seemed to have pushed
himself too far when he ran a North Pole marathon
as part of a three-man Army team.
We had to do 10 laps of a 2.6-mile loop, says Sean.
There were snow drifts where you sank to your knees.
When we finished it there was a massive sense of
euphoria. Our combined times won us the team event!
Adventurous training takes you out of your comfort
zone, and doing a marathon in one of the most remote
parts of the world was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
MAJOR SEAN GREAVES, 32
RADC DENTIST (REGULAR)
An arctic jog, you say? Marvellous idea...
Ill just go and fetch my winter coat
A few years ago, someone asked Emma Morrison for a
favour. They needed her to drive the service vehicle that
carries the Armed Forces Rally Teams spare parts. Emma
agreed, and her life has never quite been the same since.
I enjoyed it so much, and I was invited to become a
co-driver in the team, she remembers. We race Land
Rovers in the British Rally Championship each year.
And Emma recently jumped at the chance to track test
a Mini especially one that had been tuned to within an
inch of its life by mechanics from the Royal Electrical and
Mechanical Engineers. Minis are like little go-karts, she
says. They did an amazing job with the engine, and it
was the best fun Ive had in a car for ages.
Emma has had a few little scrapes during her Army
rallying career but, as she puts it, memorable moments
are what careers in the Army are all about.
Emma wanted a new challenge, and ended up
co-driving in the Armed Forces Rally Team
CORPORAL EMMA MORRISON, 33, RAMC
OPERATING THEATRE PRACTITIONER (TERRITORIAL)
Four-minute-mile hero and Olympian Sir Roger Bannister was also a Captain in the RAMC
M
edicine is a very demanding
profession. As well as all the mental
effort and concentration needed for
hours of study, you need to be able to
think on your feet and make tough decisions under
pressure. So its no surprise that these skills have
helped some members of the Army Medical
Services to become stars of the sports arena as
well as heroes in the operating theatre.
Corporal Emma Morrison knows more about
thinking under pressure than most. As a Territorial,
she combines her role as a civilian nurse with a
military career in her spare time, and still finds time
to be a co-driver in the Armed Forces Rally Team.
And she loves every minute of it. Racing at
120mph down a narrow dirt road gives you a
massive adrenaline rush, laughs Emma. You and
your driver have to work as a tight team and be
professional because youre responsible for each
other. Its not dissimilar to teamwork in combat.
Major Ann OFlynn, 35
RAVC VETERINARY OFFICER (REGULAR)
The vet whos equally at home on the
sports field as she is in the surgery
Once youve completed a five-year veterinary
degree and taken on a challenging job tending
to the Armys working animals in the toughest
environments, there probably isnt much more
for an ambitious young vet to achieve. Unless
the vet is Major Ann OFlynn, that is.
As well as being an Army Vet, Ann plays rugby
for England, earning 23 caps so far. She is also
part of the Armys all-conquering side, and was
a member of the first ever womens team to play
at Twickenham rugby stadium.
I get huge satisfaction from working with
people who care about animals as much as me,
says Ann. The Army recognises the importance
of sport, so I can fit my rugby training in around
my working day. Theyre the ideal employers.
Seans desire to test
himself has taken him
to some far-flung places
The Armys support
is key to Anns success
on the rugby pitch
SARAH WILKIN-
6 7
In her own words, Captain Johrene Devlin tells us how it feels to save lives and
rebuild communities abroad as a member of the Armys medical support team
T
he best thing about being in the
Army is the variety of work you
never know what to expect next. I
was working at a military hospital
in Portsmouth one day last year when I got
a call from the Royal Highland Fusiliers.
They were looking for nurses to fly out
with them to Belize in South America.
making A
difference
Only three people have won the Victoria Cross twice two of them were Army doctors
Theyre an Infantry regiment who were
going off to do jungle warfare training and
they needed a team from the AMS to
provide medical support. I took the call at
four in the afternoon and was at the airport
ready to fly out the following morning.
Belize is a really tiny coastal country
with a tropical climate, and the Army
on the front line
Captain Johrene Devlin, 29
QARANC Nursing Officer (Regular)
Soldier-turned-officer Johrene was initially
drawn to the Army by the active lifestyle
it promised. Her other big passion at the
time was nursing, so she couldnt believe
her luck when the Army said they would
sponsor her through university and
guarantee her a job after she graduated.
Years on, shes travelled the world, taken
part in untold sports and gained a wealth
of experience, but her appetite for nursing
and helping others still hasnt waned
IN ACTION
IN ACTION
8 9
Ive always linked the Army with the idea of being fit and packing loads of
activities into your spare time, and that was a big part of the attraction for me.
Ive always spent my spare time doing sports, so it was great to discover that I
could continue in the same vein once Id joined the Army. And wherever in the world you
are based, they always make sure there are things to do as well as time to just chill out.
In Belize, after working under such pressure, it was such a relief to spend some
downtime with everyone and get to know them better. Then there were loads of
activities laid on for us by an Army Physical Training Instructor. He organised something
different for us to take part in each day. On the first day we were taken out in a boat
and we got to swim in the sea with sharks and stingrays, which was absolutely
amazing. Over the week we also trekked in the hills, and did abseiling and
waterfall jumping. And the best thing is that its all considered part of my job.
life outside work
Army life has plenty of rewards to offer in
your spare time as well as on the job. And
Captain Devlin makes the most of them
does its jungle training in the rain
forests there. At first we were stationed in
a medical centre on camp before moving
out into the jungle with the Infantry unit.
You take your medical bag, an ambulance
and whatever you can fit in the back of
it, and that has to equip you to deal with
just about anything.
Wherever we deploy on exercises or
operations the biggest challenge for the
medical staff is to constantly provide an
NHS standard of care. This isnt easy
because we often shift location and we
operate in some harsh conditions. In
The British Army invented guerrilla warfare in the jungles of Malaysia during WWII
Belize we had to commandeer some of the
small buildings dotted around the jungle
and convert them quickly into ad hoc
medical centres. If we found ourselves
running short of supplies, wed phone the
medical centre back at base and they
would bring out whatever we needed.
If someone had a really serious injury,
we could call for help from an Army
helicopter and it would come and evacuate
the patient to the main medical centre.
One of the big considerations with
illness and injury in the jungle is the
native wildlife. It was part of our job to
We needed to familiarise
ourselves with jungle insects,
snakes and spiders so we
knew how to treat any bites
familiarise ourselves with lots of different
species of insects, spiders and snakes so
that if someone got bitten, wed know how
to treat them. Its very rare to get this type
of experience working in an NHS hospital
in the UK, and it was a real eye-opener.
Creature comforts
The most rewarding thing was delivering
great service while working and living in
such harsh surroundings. We set up some
showers for ourselves, but in general the
living conditions were really basic. Its only
when youve finished the exercise and get
back to all the comforts of the base camp
that you begin to realise how much youve
learned. You look back and appreciate how
useful the experience has been. Its also the
time when you start to wind down and get
the chance to enjoy the country itself. The
Army recognises the value of downtime
on operations wherever youre serving
and the officers in charge had organised a
barbecue to welcome us back to base.
Then it was off to do some adventurous
training. There are some really beautiful
beaches in Belize, and also amazing
On operations, the British Army helps to treat
injured locals as well as its own combat troops
adventurous training facilities so, on top
of the jungle training, soldiers on exercise
get to combine work with the fun stuff.
It did feel a bit like a holiday at times
the beaches we spent much of our time
on looked like something from a holiday
brochure. You work very closely with each
other in high-pressure situations when
training as you do on tour so its good
to have the chance to relax together
afterwards as well. You get to see your
colleagues in a completely different
context the atmosphere is brilliant.
While this all sounds like good fun,
the training was hard work and very
worthwhile. When you deploy for real on
operations, the experience you gain in
places like Belize suddenly becomes
extremely valuable. You already know what
its like to perform your role in difficult
conditions, to make decisions under
pressure and to work as part of a team.
I felt well prepared when I first did an
operational tour to Iraq. Ive been there
twice now. When youre working in
Accident and Emergency in the NHS, you
might treat people with cuts, grazes and